ABUJA, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria's electoral body on Tuesday said it is working to ensure that rigging of results is made "impossible" in the upcoming general elections.
In a statement reaching Xinhua in Abuja, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it would ensure the elections, starting next month, to be free, fair, and credible.
"Let me assure Nigerians that nobody within or outside INEC can rig the 2019 general elections," said the statement by INEC spokesman Rotimi Oyekanmi.
The statement said the voting process would be carried out in a way that every voter must present his or her Permanent Voter's Card (PVC) and must be verified, confirmed and authenticated by the Smart Card Reader before voting.
Accreditation and voting will be simultaneously done, according to the INEC. "It is important to also state that the Commission adopted this method because it was recommended by all the local and international observers that covered the 2015 general elections," the electoral body said.
This was after confirmation that more than 2 million voters did not return to cast their ballots after accreditation in that election for a number of reasons.
"Indeed, INEC is capable of and will conduct free, fair and credible general elections. All we ask is for all stakeholders to play by the rules," INEC added.
In the past two decades, the most populous African country has seen hundreds of litigations challenging the electoral process.
The opposition parties do not often have trust in the process.
At a press conference on Monday, Nigeria's main opposition People's Democratic Party claimed it had "credible information" that the electoral body and its chief had been compromised ahead of the forthcoming elections.
The opposition party demanded that INEC immediately rejigged the electoral guidelines in a way that accreditation must be first concluded, and the number of accredited voters ascertained and openly announced before actual voting.
Nigeria will hold this year's general elections on Feb. 16 to elect the president and national assembly members, and on March 2 to elect state governors and state houses of assembly members.
